Chapter 214: Fist and Shield
Serma could see the blade coming in fast from underneath, the tip glinting. Despite seeing it, Serma's body felt as fluid as rusty iron. Her movements barely let her step to one side as the spider-centaur-queen easily stepped forward on her many legs and redirected the slash as if she were dancing.
Serma's blade vibrated harshly as she raised it in a sloppy guard, sending her skidding back.
The spider - Deo had mentioned she was called 'Muffet' - pressed in with playful jabs and in the flashes of the blade, Serma saw her father's training yard where he chewed her out for failing, mishandling a basic feint-and-counter maneuver that her sisters had mastered years ago.
Serma hated how her eyes stung more than the ache in her arms from the continuous guarding.
"You're doing great!" Mas yelled and Serma nearly walked right into Muffet's blade in sheer surprise.
Muffet spun, perhaps wondering if Serma had a plan, dancing away.
"I've got this," Serma told herself, trying to steady her blade. Her father's voice slipped into her mind.
'Eyes forward, Verluan do not back down. Charge and control the battle!' he snapped and Serma's feet moved, her sword glowing slightly as she thrust it forward, letting the momentum carry her across the room as she used her cloth magic to turn the soles of her shoes to a frictionless smooth surface, banishing any creases.
With a slam of her two front legs, Muffet caught Serma's blade in a tight slap of her strength, halting her thrust dead in its tracks. The monstrous spider face leaned in close and Serma felt the urge to scurry into a hole rise up.